


In All Honesty

by eldee



Category: Glee
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-10-23
Updated: 2009-10-23
Packaged: 2017-10-12 08:16:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/122816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eldee/pseuds/eldee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In all honesty, having Finn Hudson as a stepbrother had turned out a lot better than Kurt had originally imagined.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In All Honesty

**Author's Note:**

> NOTE: This was written in Oct 2009, right after episode 1.08, and has nothing to do with following storylines that had developed. Just coincidence. :)
> 
> Thanks to sionnain for the beta.

In all honesty, having Finn Hudson as a stepbrother had turned out a lot better than Kurt had originally imagined.

 

**~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~**

It had been a shock, when Kurt's dad and Finn's mom had announced they were going to be married. Kurt had known they had met a couple times at Glee Club parent meetings and other events, but both he and Finn had been clueless that their parents had formed a further relationship. Kurt, while surprised, had given it a lot of thought at first. So had Finn, apparently, as they would talk about it over lunch in hushed voices. They both thought it was going too fast; but, then again, Finn had mentioned that they were old and been lonely for such a long time that maybe they just wanted to get dating out of the way and get to the point. Finn could respect that, and so could Kurt.

Kurt hadn't thought it would go _bad_ , per say, but having a brother – heck, having a mother … heck! having other people living in the house, period - wasn't something he was used to, and it wasn't something he ever thought would happen.

Not that he didn't want his father to be happy, because of course he did. But in all the scenarios from his middle school days (and, okay, high school ones too, up to and including three days before their parents' wedding) that had put Finn Hudson in his life, this certainly hadn't been one of them.

But, as it turned out, it was working out.

Mostly.

Kurt's first issue had been, quite naturally, _space_. As in, the basement was _Kurt's_ space, and he didn't particularly want to share it with anyone. Not that he talked about this out loud to anyone but he felt it was his sanctuary, in a way. A place he could retreat, and on occasion invite in a very special and very select few, and be himself.

His father had promised him this wouldn't be an issue. Finn could have the spare room upstairs. And Finn himself had looked around Kurt's basement room the first time he was given a house tour, and had declared with an honest and genuine smile, "Cool room." But he was quite enthusiastic with his own room, which Kurt's father had insisted on fitting with new bedroom furniture, linen, and mattress (all which Kurt had picked out) as a welcome-to-your-new-home present. And even though he was a bit bashful and insisted he didn't need it, Finn was obviously happy with his own new space, and that was just fine with Kurt.

The other thing that Kurt had thought he'd have an issue with would be towels. Yes, towels. Mainly, Finn walking around his house in one. (He was afraid it would be distracting, and also be counterproductive to the fact he _had_ stopped with the scenarios three days before the wedding.) But, as it turned out – Kurt was fine with dealing with it. And Kurt knew he would be after the first time it happened.

It turned out, you see, that Finn wasn't much of a morning person, not even after a shower. The first time he stumbled into the kitchen in nothing but a towel – one of the fluffy dark chocolate brown ones with bright lime-green accents from _Sheets and Things_ (unfortunately, the only decent place in Lima to acquire such products) that went perfectly with the bathroom décor – Finn practically walked into the refrigerator. And than repeatedly reached at the wrong side of the door, because back in his other house, the door handle for his old fridge had been on the opposite side.

Finally, Kurt took pity on him and poured him a glass of juice. Even standing in front of Finn's bare chest, the dumb had toned down the pretty. At least a little bit. Or, well, at least enough to deal with, anyway.

Kurt also thought that sharing his father would be a problem. Not that he and his father had been particularly close in the past – theirs had been a fragile relationship, Kurt always afraid it would tumble apart if certain secrets were ever revealed. But even with Kurt coming out, he and his father _had_ grown closer after Kurt joined the football team. His father had even showed a supportive presence at the events that New Directions participated in, possibly as an exchange rather than interest, but Kurt appreciated it nonetheless.

Therefore, Kurt was a little worried at first when Finn started joining his father for bonding moments, such as watching _Biggest Catch_. They would watch the show, and then talk about it. It was more then Kurt and his father had when it came to common television interests. But they did invite Kurt to join, and after one episode, any jealousy Kurt may have had over it quickly dissipated. _Biggest Catch_ just was not his thing, and if Finn and his dad wanted to talk about it, then they could do so all they wanted.

Finn seemed to like and appreciate the male figure presence in his life. Kurt figured that's why he seemed to like Mr. Schue so much, but Mr. Schue was just a teacher, not a father. And Kurt didn't think that Finn really needed a father, because he turned out just fine without one. In fact, Kurt thought that having a single mother was probably what contributed to Finn being such a nice, sensitive guy – for a straight boy, anyway.

But, going by his own parental situation, you wouldn't think Kurt would have turned out the way he did. So he could admit that maybe his theory was wrong. Whatever it was, Kurt didn't mind sharing his dad for father-bonding moments, if that's what Finn needed.

The thing was, Kurt didn't really need a female presence in his life. He did quite fine, thankyouverymuch, with being aware of his feminine, sensitive side. He hadn't needed a mother or a father for that, and had found his own way.

Still, Finn's mother did want to make an effort in getting to know Kurt and bond with him as her son and his father were doing. And Kurt did appreciate the effort – even though they didn't seem to have much in common. Or that's what he thought, at first. And so he made a little project for himself, using his impeccable fashion knowledge to give her a head to toe make-over.

Now, he didn't do this all at once. He didn't pressure her or insist on it. It started slowly, really, with shopping trips and then a visit to Kurt's own incredibly fabulous hair stylist. Slowly over the summer, week by week, Kurt coaxed his stepmother out of the early 1990s of tall curly hair and two-toned denim outfits and was succeeding in making her a modern woman.

Plus, they liked to gossip about the goings on of _Young and the Restless_ , and it came to the point where, they would record it and set up a day to watch it together. That was kind of nice, Kurt thought, to have his own parent to share a television interest with.

Kurt reflected on this, quite often, trying to make sense of his life. For the most part, he was satisfied with how his family had grown, and how they were settling into life together.

 

**~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~**

 

Satisfied, that was, except for when he returned home one Tuesday evening, with just over half an hour to spare before Mercedes came over for their weekly tradition, and he was tempted to change his mind about liking the whole situation.

Because, as soon as he came into the house, Kurt knew there was something wrong. There was something very wrong – something that should be right, but it really wasn't in this case.

There were boys in the basement. _His_ basement. Boys! And while there had never been a lot of boys down there – okay, virtually none, with the exception of his father and Finn, who were _family_ \- it was something that needed to be remedied while _he was there_. And he wasn't there! Not yet, anyway.

He descended the stairs, and he saw there were only two of them, and that half the boys down had somewhat of an excuse to be down there, as it was Finn. Finn was allowed, though Kurt would still prefer to be there when someone, even his stepbrother (especially his stepbrother?) was in his space.

The other was Noah Puckerman. Blerg. As hot as he was, Kurt could do without Noah Puckerman anywhere _near_ his personal belongings. Or his person, for that matter. Even if things had improved slightly over the last few months, and with shared teams and interests in football and glee club, you couldn't exactly call them friends.

He came up behind them, and they were so enthralled with the game that was on the television, they didn't notice him take his stance - eyes wide, arms crossed, hip jutted out to the side, one foot out-turned and tapping impatiently on the floor.

It was when the round of… shooting, or whatever the heck this Neanderthal game was all about, was over and the television went quieter that he spoke out loud, catching their attention.

"Excuse me?" Kurt said in an unimpressed drawl. Finn gave a start, and glanced over his shoulder sheepishly. "But what are you doing in _my_ room, using _my_ television, with your-," he waved his hand absently, "-whatever it is you're playing."

Puck barely gave Kurt a glance, just started scrolling through the game menu.

"X-Box," Finn supplied, with a half-grin. "Look, I'm sorry, I tried calling your cell but I didn't get an answer."

Kurt went to push a strand of hair out of his eyes, but of course, it was already perfectly in place. "I was getting my weekly facial," Kurt said. He was pretty sure he heard Puck snort under his breath – an improvement in behavior, in Kurt's opinion. He ignored it, and continued, "What are you doing down here?"

"The color on my television is shot," Finn started to explain. Kurt could believe this; Finn's bedroom TV was _ancient_ \- it took up the whole top of his dresser! Kurt's was shiny and sleek (much like himself) and hung on the wall. "And I didn't want to move it into the living room, because if I accidentally unplugged or screwed up the ti-vo, you and Mom would've my head if that _Y & R_ show you're always talking about didn't record."

And Kurt was positive he heard Puck snort this time.

"So your dad said he didn't think it'd be a problem if we came down here," Finn put in. Kurt and Finn still referred to their parents as 'Dad and your Mom' and 'Mom and your dad'. Finn continued, trying to rush an explanation and not upset Kurt. "But I tried to call you, I did! Right, Puck?"

"Sure," the Mohawk-haired boy said with the shrug of one shoulder, eyes still glued to the television screen.

"Well," Kurt said. He was still uncomfortable with the situation before him, but Finn looked so earnest and apologetic that it was difficult to be mad. "Thank you for trying to call me," he conceded, a little nod of his head. He glanced at the television. "Mercedes is going to be here in half an hour, and we have plans for my tv."

"Sure, no problem," Finn said, seemingly glad to not be in too much trouble with Kurt. Kurt had to admit, Finn was putting in an effort for this whole… family situation… to work out.

"We're watching American Idol," Kurt added. He glanced at Puck, unsure if he should continue, but for his new brothers' sake, he did. "You two can join us, if you want?"

"Uh…" Finn glanced at his friend with uncertainty.

Puck shrugged. "Whatever, dude. I should go soon anyway. Look, are we going to play while we can?"

Finn nods, enthusiastically. "Sure. Thanks, Kurt."

"No problem," Kurt said, more relaxed and more friendly now. "At least the-" he waved in the direction of the X-Box, "game box… thingy… matches of my room."

Though his eyes were back on the television, Finn was un-phased (he was getting more used to Kurt now), and started to explain, "Game console-"

He was cut off by Puck who definitely gave a very audible snort this time, accompanied with an exaggerated eye roll. "God, you're such a f-"

Finn cut him off now, "Puck-"

But, no. _No_. For Kurt, that was quite enough from _this_ intruder in his sanctuary, and he was willing to defend it himself.

He stepped right in front of Puck, arms crossed. "Dude!" Puck exclaimed, putting the game on pause and looked up immediately. If he hadn't have looked up, he would've been looking right at Kurt's crotch, and god forbid he be looking at another guy's crotch. "You're in my way!"

"Look," Kurt started, putting on his best Confident Diva demeanor. Standing up and looking down at the boy in front of him definitely helped. He had his arms crossed, but one finger poked through the air toward Puck. "You might throw me in dumpsters, make fun of my warm-up routines, call my _perfect_ high F girly," Kurt said, though he was obviously quite proud of the note he could hit, "and even resent me for my sexuality-"

Finn tried to interject softly, ever the peacekeeper, "Kurt, come on, he didn't mean-"

Kurt held up a finger in Finn's direction now, but still looked scathingly at Puck. "Finn, no. Yes, he did, and I have something to say about it."

Puck had sat up more, and was glaring up at Kurt – but at least he hadn't stood up, or else Kurt would've lost his steam. "Yeah, let him finish. You have something to say to me, _Hummel_?"

"I do," Kurt said with conviction. "As I was saying, before I was so politely interrupted-- you might be a disrespectful cretin out in the real world, if you can call high school the real world, but this is _my_ home and _my_ room, and I _will_ be treated with respect here, got it?" Kurt lifted his chin, staring down his nose. He pointed towards the stairs. "And if you don't like it, leave. Now."

Of course, Puck wasn't going to take this laying down. "And if I don't?" he challenged.

Kurt looked smug. "I'll get my big brother to beat you up."

Finn looked puzzled. "Uh, Kurt?"

Kurt continued, "And by big brother, I mean he's kind of a giant, in case you haven't noticed, and you might be Mister Muscles over here," he said, waving a finger through the air, up and down Puck's body, "but my money is on Finn any day."

Puck just raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You're, what, going to get him to defend your honor?"

"Just my room," Kurt quipped shortly.

"Guys?" Finn tried hard to interject. Finally, both of them looked over at him. Finn looked from Kurt, to Puck, back to Kurt again, and finally to Puck. "Well, he's made his rules. It's his – awesome, by the way – television. And room. Your call, dude."

Both Kurt and Puck looked back in disbelief for a moment, but then Kurt turned back to Puck, even more smug then before.

Puck raised an eyebrow, and his scowl was even more deep-set, but he finally relaxed back in the chair. "Well, are you gonna move?" he asked gruffly, gesturing around Kurt. Kurt raised an eyebrow back, and Puck added an exasperated, " _Please_."

Kurt smiled brightly. "But of course," he said, and moved out of the way. But then he stopped, and barked an order. "Noah, up."

Puck glanced over, confused. "You're kicking me out? I said please!"

Kurt rolled his eyes, "No, just stand up for a moment. Up!"

Puck didn't look happy about it, but he also looked bored and like he didn't want to argue with Kurt about this further, so he did as he was told. Kurt reached out and pulled back the chair. "What the hell, man?" Puck exclaimed.

"You look ridiculous sitting in this," Kurt explained. And it was true – it was a cool, funky design with a high back and cool bars. Puck, with his ripped jeans and plaid shirt over a wife-beater did _not_ suit it. It was an insult to Kurt's furniture.

Puck looked at Finn with disbelief. "Is he friggin' serious over here?"

Finn grinned. "You learn to just go with it, man."

Kurt quickly dragged a simpler (but still in fine taste) chair over, a smaller one with a square cushion and straight back. "It'll be better for your posture, too," he insisted. "You sprawl too much."

"Uh. Right," Puck said, and sat down. It was obvious he was biting in some scathing remark, but at least he was trying. "Can I play now?"

Kurt nodded sagely. "Proceed, boys. I'm going to get something to eat." He glanced at the clock on the wall. "You have twenty minutes."

"Yeah, yeah," they replied, but were already focused on the game.

A little while later, Mercedes showed up. As Kurt's own best friend, and a girl, she had free reign of his basement – which she seemed all too happy to flaunt after his hushed telling of the events less then half an hour before. As they went downstairs, she loudly announced her arrival and promptly booted Puck out of _her_ chair, claiming it was the one she sat in every week as it was good for her posture.

And, the funny thing was, it was entirely true. And Puck, too invested in beating Finn in the couple minutes they had left, didn't even argue it. He just ended up standing next to the chair, thumbs moving rapidly over the controller, and gave a loud whoop when he did end up winning.

Kurt excused himself and went upstairs to get drinks to serve his friend, and stepbrother – ever the good host, he told himself. It was the proper way to be.

He was arranging the pop cans and glasses with ice on the serving tray when he heard Puck come up the stairs, and cross through the kitchen. "I'm out," he said, as way of parting, glancing over at Kurt and down at the three glasses he had out.

"You could stay. I mean, if you wanted to join?" Kurt said, by way of invitation. Noah Puckerman wasn't exactly who he imagined spending a pleasant evening bitching over song choices, wardrobe, and judges with, but crazier things _have_ happened – the fact was even in his house being one of them.

Kurt reached for a fourth glass, but Puck stopped him. "Nah, I really have to go," he said, slipping on his shoes that were on the back landing, visible from the kitchen.

Kurt shrugged a shoulder. "Suit yourself," he said, as he picked up the tray and turned toward the basement to join Finn and Mercedes.

"Kurt?"

Kurt stopped right in his tracks, and glanced over in surprise, not only from being addressed but being addressed by something other then _Hummel_ or _Hey, gay_. Puck just stood there, looking at him, and it almost appeared as if he was having an internal struggle going on.

Kurt's insides flooded with an icy feeling – he may have had the confidence in his own basement, but standing there before him was a guy who could make Kurt's life a living hell. And there was a lot of evidence and experience to prove that as fact. Puck may have softened up, just a little, after the whole slushee war and didn't attack his own glee-mates, but he could go into some sort of relapse.

Finally, Puck just said, "Cool room."

"I know," Kurt said loftily, an automatic response cultivated throughout the years. But here was Puck, obviously trying to make an effort of some sort, and so perhaps Kurt could do the same. His face softened a bit, and there was a little smile. "Thanks. I like it."

Puck just nodded. "See you around." And with that, he left Kurt – and Finn's – house.

To Kurt, it seemed like an odd parting, as they were still on the football team, had glee together, _and_ Puck was Finn's best friend and was likely to be invading Kurt's basement at some point again in the rather near future.

Still. The effort, as minimal it may seem but was probably a big thing for a guy like Noah Puckerman, was still appreciated.

Though, Kurt decided to do the sensible thing and reserve judgment for the upcoming days, when school hierarchy, appearances, and peer pressure continued to play their part in Puck's attitude toward Kurt. He wasn't holding his breath or investing anything emotional into being on anything more then civil terms with his stepbrother's best friend.

**~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~ ♪ ~**

With all the things that Kurt gained from his new family, it turned out that Noah Puckerman wasn't really that bad of guy, in all honesty.

 

 _~end_


End file.
